


Until Then

by Shoto_Todoroki



Category: Original Work
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-11
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:55:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26944009
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shoto_Todoroki/pseuds/Shoto_Todoroki
Summary: Stephanie was different. She has this certain stare. It was as if she were looking at other people from a different world as if she was not with them herself. There are also times where she murmurs numbers on her own. She was mouthing it in quick succession, her voice haunting and barely audible, and when Keith dared to ask, the eccentric girl was more than happy to share her secrets.





	Until Then

A young boy and a young girl stood on top of the slide at the playground.

Only the slide isn’t merely a slide, it was the falls of Wein Greinoheart that was forgotten a long time ago. One need to jump from its peak to gain a wish, that’s what the young girl said anyway. She throws a giddy smirk towards the young boy before sprinting and jumping from the slide, throwing caution to the wind. When she falls, the boy realized that as the sun goes down, her hair seems more gold than blonde. He began to wonder. Was her hair a part of her treasures as well? Or was there another story behind it? He has to remember to ask her that later.

The young girl’s name is Stephanie and she was Keith's childhood friend.

Stephanie was different. She has this certain stare. It was as if she were looking at other people from a different world as if she was not with them herself. There are also times where she murmurs numbers on her own. She was mouthing it in quick succession, her voice haunting and barely audible, and when Keith dared to ask, the eccentric girl was more than happy to share her secrets. 

Stephanie said she has this strange vision; her cerulean eyes saw things others didn't. She told Keith stories on how she was protecting her home from little men with a big nose and enormous ears and how they always stole the cookies in the jar because they’re allergic to bitter things. 

She was considered small for her age but she opened the world of possibilities for Keith and he lived there every day. Their hands had gone numb from forming bases in the snow so Bigfoot wouldn’t be able to track them. Once, they spend a whole summer looking for sticks so they can build a fort to please the duchess of Orien Forest. She taught him how to ride a bike so they can run away from the trolls of the east. They stopped the revolution of the wind spirits against the water kingdom.

Stephanie knew how to speak to mermaids as well. It was hard to learn the language at first since she didn’t bother to explain the details to him and her messy handwriting was hard to read. When he told her that, he received a punch in the gut before she helped him by passing him notes after every class. In her letters, she addressed him as the Captain of the seven seas, and before he knew it exchanging notes in class become a hidden quest.

Her smile was vibrant and it reminded Keith of crimson dawns when she told him how she fought the monsters at the cabin on their last summer camp. They’ve been together since they were little but even at eight, she kept surprising Keith with her escapades. She didn't play with other kids, only with him, and this alarmed Keith as well, although he was a bit happy. Stephanie had chosen him. He was the exceptional hero that draws the legendary sword.

...

She was nine when her Dad passed away. 

Her eyes were young and glacial when she told him that her Dad had to leave for a grander adventure than this one and that he was the best knight the kingdom ever had, but what would happen now that he left his Queen with no one but the eccentric princess? 

‘What an unreliable knight,’ her small shoulders were trembling. The black dress she had on was too large for her fragile build. Tears were evident on her cheeks but she didn’t wipe them away. In a gentle tone, she kept saying, ‘What a stupid, selfish knight.’

She called him a stupid knight every time she remembered her father. She would do an exaggerated bow whenever she saw a photo of him or whenever she heard his favorite song. A couple of days passed and her dad suddenly got demoted to a smelly-bandit. She said it was because she caught him robbing people of their happiness. One night, Stephanie took a quick trip to the bathroom and she accidentally heard her mom crying in the middle of the night, grievingly uttering his name in whispers. Her tiny heart ache as well every time she heard his father’s name.

The urge to catch butterflies began then. 

Both of them spend their afternoon catching butterflies instead of playing at the arcade like what the other kids do. The sun was cruel. Their skin was slicked with sweat but the two of them ignore it. She was covered in dirt and so was Keith, but they continued to catch butterflies until the sky was painted in dusky, azure hues. 

At the end of the day, they managed to capture two.

Stephanie said butterflies can keep secrets and when their human owner passes away, the secrets will be given to those who they loved dearly.

The young girl studied the butterflies they captured inside the jar with unrivaled intensity. Stephanie did not grin nor did she have her usual flair of wonder when she turns to him. 

“Keith, I’ll leave a boatload of secrets for you so you better live longer than me.”

His mind went blank. It took several beats before what she said dawns on him and when it did, he opened his mouth, closed it, opened it again but nothing came out. 

It was almost eerie how she can read him so well. 

“Hearing your secrets every day is troublesome after all.” Her lips cracked into her signature teasing smile and in an instant, the tension disappeared. Stephanie began to give the butterflies names while using different accents and his stomach began to hurt from laughing too much. The way home on that day was one of the best days of his life.

It didn’t take long before the butterflies died. 

When they discovered its listless forms at the bottom of the jar, Stephanie fell on her knees and let out an almost animalistic sob, her small frame began to tremble uncontrollably. She was choking on sobs when her mom came in, stunned by hearing Stephanie wail out of the blue. She kept asking her daughter what was wrong but they didn’t tell her why. Both of them kept the butterflies a secret. Stephanie shook her head, clasping both hands desperately to her mouth, hindering any sound from escaping. Keith also remained silent as his friend continued to weep. He promised Stephanie he wouldn’t tell. He’d never break a promise or else he has to eat a thousand needless. 

Helpless and at a loss, the Queen wrapped her arms around Stephanie and cradled her daughter against her chest until her tears ran dry. Keith’s own throat burned but he didn’t leave.

Stephanie keeps on crying even after they buried the butterflies at her backyard. The Queen and her eccentric princess had a long talk after that.

Her Mom invited her to go to the ocean the next day. 

Stephanie asked if Keith could get along and the Queen accepted, albeit reluctantly. Her mother thinks he was a bad influence on Stephanie. When her daughter wasn’t in the area, her mom intentionally ignores him but Keith remained polite nevertheless. He was Stephanie’s loyal advisor to begin with, not the Queen’s.

The drive was short and when they arrived, she dropped them off near the beach to find a parking space. With her hand on his, they walked towards the edge where the shore reaches the water, the sand filling in the gaps in their toes.

The sun was about to rise and surprisingly, this part of the ocean was deserted. Stephanie watched the water glisten underneath the sun, her face young but impassive. The sound of waves crashing against the shore filled the air. 

“Steph!” Her mom came back with a huge red balloon and an innocent child-like grin on her face. “I saw an old man selling these.” She told her, then gently looped the string around her wrist.

Stephanie looked at her mom for a very long time. Slowly— for the first time in a long while—her lips curve into a sincere, soft smile. “Thank you, Mom.” Not the Queen of the fairies, nor the kind healer of the elves, just mom. 

“Don’t you want to swim?” Her mom asked.

Stephanie shrugged half-heartedly. "It's okay. Keith's here with me."

Her mom paused, taken aback for a second that her daughter’s decision has to be from Keith. She underestimated how deep their bond was.

The Queen backtracks and recuperates easily. "I believe Keith would love to swim as well."

Stephanie glanced at Keith and her mom followed her gaze.

Keith comprehends the Queen’s uncertain stare so he managed a smile. "Come on, Steph. Maybe it's not that bad.” He bumped her with his shoulder playfully, “We also have to make a castle near the shore to show that we mean peace with the Merfolks, right?"

It took her some time to think it over. "You're right." Stephanie finally says, then turns to look back at her mom. "Keith says we're going to the beach to make a sand castle."

"I'm grateful, Keith." Her mom smiles at him, grateful but still hesitant. She opened her bag and rummage for pails and shovels. “You go ahead, Steph, Keith, I’ll set the camera for pictures. I’ll be with you shortly.”

Two pairs of short legs approached the ocean. Stephanie did a quick survey of the area and they agreed to set camp near the sea and started working on their sandcastle. She worked on building the towers while Keith shoves the damp sands in her way so she can use it. 

A splash of waves crashes near their castle. Another one came, then another, and when the third one came, Stephanie interrupted the comfortable silence between them with an unfamiliar question.

“How much do you like me, Keith?”

It was a sudden question but not a weird one. Keith looked up at her briefly from what he was doing. “That’s a stupid question.”

“. . . It was?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh.”

One word. A simple ‘Oh’ but it was filled with such disappointment that Keith groaned inwardly in agony.

“For example,” he whispered into the wind in defeat, Stephanie looked at him expectantly, “the two of us got into some accident, and we’re hanging for our lives on a single rope,” Keith looked at her and she nudges closer, afraid that she wouldn’t hear him. “If it couldn’t handle both of our weight, I would probably let go of the rope.”

“Oh . . .” she murmers, at a loss on what to say. Her eyes softened. “I . . . I see.”

“Yeah.” Keith looked away, ignoring the growing heat on his cheeks. 

“You’re,” Stephanie whispers, her gaze hot on his face. “stupid, Keith. Very stupid.”

He laughs softly in a depreciating manner, “I guess I am, yeah.”

“. . . You wouldn’t ask me how much I like you?” 

“That’s a stupid question so I wouldn’t.”

His response only met silence on her end.

Keith glances her way, just a flicker of the eyes, but her expression confused him. There’s a smug smile playing on her lips as she watches him. His brows knit, forming a long, shallow line of annoyance between them. So that’s it? She already knew how much he likes her but she still asked?

She poked his flushed cheek. “Don’t worry, Keith,” Her voice was nauseatingly sweet, “I like you too.”

He throws a lump of wet sand towards her way. She chuckled and easily avoided the attack because his aim sucks. He was about to throw another when the Queen approached them, a camera dangling on her neck. 

“What are you guys doing?” Her mom asked. Keith noticed that the Queen’s eyes were identical to her daughter’s when it was burning with curiosity.

Stephanie pointed to a stand of hotdogs about three hundred yards away and said, “From here to there, is our land. We have to protect it by building a sandcastle but we have to save ourselves first because if we die, no one is going to rule this land.”

Keith watched her as she retells her story, hooked by her dramatics. Her elegant flair never ceases to amaze him.

“Save it from what?” Her mom asked, trying to sound unaffected, but managing to look both scared and nervous.

Pleased, Stephanie continued. “From the dwarves of the realm of Eantra,” Her voice changed into a deep haunting tone which sounds pleasingly charismatic, “They are trying to conquer the kingdom of the Merfolks for a while now,” 

“But I’ll protect this land no matter what.” Stephanie looked at the ocean. Her eyes narrowed in the fierce concentration of a child with only one goal, one world, and one path. She wouldn’t let the dwarves oppressed another kingdom. “Keith and I will build their worst weakness.”

“I know of this,” Her mom interjected and the two children looked at her with surprise. “The rule is to build a huge sandcastle decorated with seashells, right?” 

Keith turned to his friend, unsure of the Queen’s knowledge, but Stephanie was already nodding wisely, a bright smile illuminating her face. “How did you know that?”

The whole morning was spent on making a huge sandcastle after that. Stephanie asked the Queen to build the west side of the castle and she asked Keith to search for the treasures the pirates left behind near the shore. He enthusiastically agreed and started to look for ten seashells. It was an easy task because the beach was filled with them so it didn’t take long for him to come back, and when he eventually did, the Queen was telling Stephanie about her hobby when she was a child. She would dress in a white blanket and her older brother would act as her servant instead of her husband because she didn’t like his face. Stephanie laughs and Keith couldn’t help but release a snicker as well. 

The Queen told them of her first field trip where she vomits all of her lunch on her friend’s lap, the time where she learns how to swim by holding her breath and almost drowning in return, and her first encounter with Stephanie’s dad. Her Dad is a painter and her Mom was taking pictures of his artworks and they almost end up spending their whole day inside a prison cell because her Dad couldn’t understand English and thought her mom was planning on selling his pictures online.

“It was my mistake,” the Queen said, “I didn’t know I wasn’t supposed to take pictures of any art. I was young and naïve then, and pretty much ignorant. It didn’t help that I couldn’t help but laugh when his accent got worse when he became angry.”

She told them of the time when they first got Stephanie and how they couldn’t choose between pink and yellow for her room, and when they eventually got to the point of being nauseated by hearing just a simple line from a nursery song. She still knew all of them, the Queen said, and began humming a familiar song. Stephanie recognized it almost instantly and Keith did too, they sang their hearts out as they build a cruddy-looking castle but the three of them didn’t notice nor did they care.

By the time the sun was directly above their heads, all of them were sweating so much but there’s a wide, splitting grins on their faces. Keith didn’t know the Queen could be this fun.

They took wacky pictures with the castle. After what seems like a hundred of them, the Queen stood up and patted the sand from her jeans. “Let’s take a short break. Do you want some ice cream?” She asked her daughter.

Stephanie beamed in reply, “Sure!”

“Come with me for a bit then, let’s take pictures of the ocean before we buy one.”

Stephanie stood up and excitedly followed her mother, leaving Keith a few strides behind. When she was able to catch up to her, she slipped her hand on her mother’s and began talking about a tale Keith hadn’t heard before. He gaped at her back, feeling a little shunned. He walked after them, a lump starting to form on his throat. Keith called her name but he suddenly couldn’t. 

His lips wouldn’t move, his mouth was dry. Fear ran down his spine. His steps began to slow as his breath struggles, drowning in non-existent waters. He looked at her blurring back that was getting further away. He wouldn’t reach her in time. 

"Stephanie,” He gasps, softly—weakly, “just like this . . . are you going to kill me?”

She didn’t hear him. The hand that reaches for her flickered. It was brief, but he saw a glimpse of transparency. 

He blinks and the world was unfocused and drastically glacial. He takes a slow shaking intake of breath.

It’s. . . okay now. 

Keith’s fine with dying.

“Still, I’m sorry. . . I couldn’t. . . protect you at all.”

At least, he can be at her side until the end.

It was absurd.

Keith wasn’t expecting Stephanie to turn around.

As if their memories dawn on her, Stephanie glanced his way out of the blue. She blinked a couple of times, confused by the unforeseen lapses in her memory. Even though surprised, pure pleasure still flashed in her grin when she waves him over dramatically; her golden hair framing her small face in a gentle caress. She called his name in a familiar, endearing affectionate voice.

“Come on, Keith! You’re so slow!” 

The tears that streamed down his cheeks felt cold. Relief flooded his whole being. Stephanie remembers, she failed to recall for a moment but she still remembers him—!

Overwhelmed by it all, he smiled over his tears and messily wipes them away with his sleeve as he runs after her.

Keith was only an imaginary friend. Slowly but surely, Stephanie will forget about him. Their time together, the stories she told him, the secrets they shared, all of it will be forgotten in time.

One day, she will kill him and he will cease to exist but until then. . . he would stay at her side as long as she needed him.

__

_For all the friends we had and lost. Thank you for the memories._


End file.
